Rumors have been circulating that Matt Lauer plans on leaving Today when his contract expires in 2012.

In fact, sources have even named ABC's Chris Cuomo as a possible replacement should Matt Lauer decide to leave.

However, Today's executive producer, Jim Bell, is called the rumors "ludicrous" in a recent interview and calls the reports simple "speculation".

When asked if Matt Lauer had informed the producer about his plans to depart the show in 2012, Bell responded:

"Absolutely not. I think that one is more ludicrous. When we're talking about something that is almost two years away, it's silly speculation. I think it's great that the show can generate this much attention and passion out there but we're fortunate that so much of it has been wrong and misguided."

He seems like a pret-ty good authority on the subject matter, so we'll trust this guy when he says Matt Lauer doesn't have any plans to go anywhere.

And why would he? Today has just reached a record 800 consecutive weeks as the #1 morning news show!

Congratulations! That's A LOT of consecutive weeks, but we're sure the show has plenty more of #1 weeks ahead!

Would U like to see Matt Lauer leave Today? If so, where or what do U think he should do instead?

As we previously reported, Britney Spears' baby daddy has requested an increase in his $20K a month child support stipend. While it's said that Godney isn't THRILLED at the request, she's letting her poppa negotiate a deal with KFed.

And it appears that negotiations are well under way, though Mr. Spears is NOT impressed with his former son-in-law!